Box cleat



H-w. EMBRY BOX CLEAT -Filed Sept. li 1926 x JZ. ZZ/ 7.2 1,2

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Patented Jan. 31, 192s.'

UNITED STATES PATENT Orl-*Fica HARRY w. EMBRY, or LOUISVILLE. KENTUCKY, Assreivon To GENERAL nox OOM- PANY, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION or DELAWARE.

BOX CLEAT.

Application led September 1, 1926. Serial No. 132,913.

This invention relates to improvements in box cleats and has for its object to provide a new and improved cleat for use in fabrication of wire bound boxes. Other objects are to provide a cleat which, when incorpo rated with the other' elements of a wire bound box or the like, will permit relatively easy folding of the blank to box form and climiw nating or greatly decreasing the tendency in present day cleats to split oft' or break durlng folding, to provide a cleatv of this character which will `render the boxes stronger, particularly at the corners, than present day boxes; to provide anew cleat having the above advantages which may be easily man ufactured on` present day machines; to provide such a cleat which will permit folding of the box blank in which it is included, even though staples may have been driven into the interiitting portions of the cleats; to provide a cleatof this character which will permit stapling of the `binding wire closerto the corners of the box than is permissible in present day practice; and, in general, to provide a device which will accomplish the above and other advantages.

In the accompanying drawing, I have illustrated an embodiment of my invent-ion, in which- Y Fig. 1 is a plan view of the inner side of a box blank utilizing my improved cleat.

Fig. 2 is a bot-tom elevation ofthe cleat drawn to an enlarged scale.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the same, the associated boards or strips being indicated in dotted lines. f

Fig. 4 is a section along the line Ll al of Fig. 3 the portion of end and side boards being illustrated in assembled relation.

F ig. 5 is a disassembled view of another form of the cleat showing the cooperating ends of two cleats shaped slighty differently from the cleat shown in Fig. 2.

In the drawing, 10 illustrates a box blank formed on the veneer or other strips or boards 11 secured to cleats 12 by staples or the like driven through binding wires 13, the boards 11 and into the cleats 12 in well known manner.

In the manufacture of these blanks, as is weil known, the cleats 12 are properly positioued and slightly spaced and the boards or strips 11 are stapled together as stated, the same staples being utilized to secureV the binding wires 18 to the blank.

The cleats 12 are" formed of strips of wood or the like having V-shaped notches 121 at one end formed by the sides 12b diverging outwardly from the flattened base or bottoni 12. The other ends of the'cleats 12 yare formed with the wedge or V-shaped tongues or tenons 12(1 tapering from the relatively wide top 12e to the narrow bottom 12f, which is also flattened as illustrated in Fig. 2, for example. The top 12e is of a width equal to or slightly less than thewidth of the notch i 12"' in the otherend. l After formation of the blank, illustrated In Fig. 1, when it is desired to assemble or complete the box, the sides are folded Varound and end boards 14:V are fitted againstand secured or not as desired to the cleats 12.

During this folding of the sides the tongues 121'of the cleats will move into the adjacent notches or recesses 12?L of the adjacent cleats and this entrance, as will be obvious, is without interference due to the considerable ditl'erence in width between the narrow edge l2f of the tongues and the wide opening of the notches 12a'.

The llattened bases 12'3 of the notches and the flattened edges 12f of notches 12a without sufficient clearance to permit objectionable play after folding.

Nevertheless, should the staple ends protrude through the sides of the tongues 12d or the sides 12? of the notches, the tapered construction of the tongues and notches will permit the accomodation of these protruded staple ends and the folding of the box will not be seriously interfered with. i

There is no danger of interference with the entrance of the tongue into the notches as is frequently the case in present day mortise and tenon cleat construction as will be apparentl and little or no force is required in the folding operation to ensure seating of tht tongues in the notches. At the same time, as stated, should forcevin excess of that required be applied Wedging or splitting at the sides of the notches is prevented by the flattened Contact surfaces 12 and 12.

Another advantage resides in the tapered construction of the sides of the notches 12 which, increasing in thickness from the entrance tothe enclosed end, present an increasing resistance to any splitting or Wedging action.

The relatively wide top of the tongue 12d permits driving of staples without destruction and permits stapling of the wires close to the colners of the boxes which does away with any possibility of the box Wires slipping over the corners under stress or contact from other boxes when loaded.

If desired, the cleat may be manufactured in the form shown in Fig. 5 in whichv the end of the tenon is slightly rounded and the seat of the mortise is correspondingly rounded. This construction'will give approximately the same results as are obtained from the cleat shown in Fig. 2, as it is found that this cleat also will not have a tendency to split since there is enough wood at the bottom of the inortise to counteract such an etl'ect. It is contemplated that the bottom of this recess will be substantially Hat.

My improved cleat is also susceptible of economical manufacture.

It will be obvious that luy/invention is susceptible of modification and I do not wish to be restricted to the form shown and described except as defined in the appende claims. A

f That I claim is l. A box cleat having a tongue at one end and a recess at the other, said tongue and recess having converging sides7 the side of one converging in a plane transverse to the plane of convergence of the other.

2. A box cleat having a tongue at one end and a recess at the other= said tongue and recess having pairs of converging sides, the sides of the tongue converging in planes transversely of the cleat and the sides of the recess converging in planes longitiulinally of they cleat.

3. A box eli-at having a tongue at one end and a. recess at the other, said tongue and recess having converging sides, the sides of the tongue being angularly disposed relative to the sides of the recess.

Ll. A box cleat having a tongue at one end and a recess at the other, said tongue and recess having pairs of converging sides, the sides of one pair being at an angle to those of the other.

5. A box cleat having a tongue at one end and a recess at the other, said tongue and recess having pairs of converging sides, corresponding sidcs of one being at an angle to those of the other.

6. A box cleat having a tongue at one end and a recess at the other, said tongue and recess each having a` tapered side7 the tapered side of the tongue'tapering transversely of the cleat and the tapered side of the recess tapering longitudinally of the cleat.

In Witness whereof2 I hereunto subscribe my name to this specification.

HARRY W. EMBRY. 

